Kip Brady receives Conservation Educator of the Year from Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Kip Brady – NPHS Science Teacher
The Museum's prestigious Conservation Educator of the Year Award was presented to New Philadelphia High School science teacher Mr. Kip Brady on Friday, September 9. Brady was awarded with a bronze statue of a Northern Cardinal at the Museum's annual Conservation Symposium to commemorate his many achievements.
Brady has taught at New Philadelphia City Schools for 15 years. He has designed numerous hands-on scientific investigations for his students, such as examining the impact of surface coal mining on forest ecosystems, investigating the roles of local invertebrate species in nutrient cycling and evaluating the effects of agricultural development on recreational fisheries. Impressively, the surface coal mining project engaged more than 800 students from five grade levels, and its results were recently published in the journal Restoration Ecology. One of Brady's nominators remarked, “Most students noted that it was the first time they had ever seen a salamander.”
The programs and projects initiated by Brady have engaged his students, fellow educators and the surrounding community. Brady's “Forests at Night” program invites elementary school students study biodiversity at night with family and friends. Additionally, high school biology students research local forest species and then write and illustrate a non-fiction children’s book in a project called "Forest Stories." The students then read their stories with kindergarteners and explore forest biodiversity together.
Brady has worked tirelessly to secure grant funding for these projects and has even earned his bus driver endorsement to facilitate more innovative and expansive projects.
“Mr. Brady is relentless in his education approach to provide a relevant educational experience for the students in his classroom. He consistently uses the natural environment, and countless hours of his own time before and after school, in an effort to connect his classroom to the world in which his students live, work and will eventually raise families.” -Excerpt from a letter of support